


Yet Another Day

by chaoticrandomness



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers, Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magika | Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fusion, F/F, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-29
Updated: 2015-03-21
Packaged: 2018-03-09 13:03:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,577
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3250679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chaoticrandomness/pseuds/chaoticrandomness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which the plot of PMMM occurs with several APH characters. Mostly.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Episode 1

I’m dreaming again.

 

I shouldn’t be dreaming of that house again. I shouldn’t be dreaming of worst-case scenarios and dead sisters and mysterious girls with white hair and purple eyes who promise to save me.

 

I’ve escaped that house. I should be happy. I shouldn’t be crying right now. I shouldn’t have to remind myself that I’m currently living in an apartment with my sister and that my abuser’s in a mental hospital. I don’t need to tell myself that I’m safe.

 

But I do.

 

* * *

 

“Rasia, are you alright?” my sister asks as I wake up.

 

“Yes, I’m fine.” I tell her. I don’t need to worry her with my dreams, for I have no desire to bother her.

 

She’s skeptical. She’s always skeptical of every time I tell her that I’m alright, for she assumes that I’m hiding something. Which is true.

 

I hide my dreams from her. She hides her weaknesses and scars from me. The two of us play games of hiding our traumas from each other, so we don’t burden anyone.

 

I know that she spends hours searching the missing persons database for someone that’s probably dead and might not exist. She most likely knows about my scars and dreams and everything else I’ve ever hidden from her.

 

Evelin did that as well. But she’s either dead or in some random town in the middle of nowhere.

 

I grab an umbrella and leave for school, for it’s been raining for the past three weeks. It’s like the world’s been mourning.

 

* * *

 

“Rasia! There you are!” Lillian exclaims, running towards me and grabbing my hand.

 

“Ah…. um….” I begin, trying to say something to her, but I end up accidentally dropping my bags and umbrella on her. “I’m sorry!”

 

“It’s fine, you don’t have to apologize so much, although it’s kind of cute when you do that….” she rambles, handing me my umbrella and bag. “Aren’t you glad that it’s finally stopped raining?”

 

“I guess….” I answer. I haven’t really been paying attention to the weather, but the rain does seem to have stopped…. and there’s a rainbow splitting the sky in two.

 

_It’s like it’s telling us that something’s going to happen. That there’s going to be a major change in our lives._

_If it’s for the better or the worse, I don’t know…._

 

“As much as I’d love to join you in observing this beautiful world, we have to leave now.” Lillian says, snapping me out of my thoughts. The two of us continue on our way to school, but my mind’s still elsewhere, filled with dreams of love and passion and fantasy.

 

“If you want, we can always go back after school.” she says, grabbing my hand again.

 

“Um…. if it doesn’t bother you….” I answer, attempting to drag my mind out of that house again, for it keeps going there when people touch me, even though I know that Lillian’s not going to hurt me….

 

I take my seat as a girl with silver hair and violet eyes walks towards the front of the classroom.

 

_Wait…. have I met her? In one of my dreams? She does look kind of familiar, like I met her a long time ago and forgot about it…._

“Class, this is our new transfer student, Emilia Bondevik, and I hope you’ll welcome her into our classroom.” my teacher announces. “There’s an empty seat next to Rasia, you can sit there.”

 

Emilia calmly walks towards me, staring at a spot above my head. She places her binders on her desk, and hands me a sheet of paper.

 

_Could you show me around the school?_

 

“I guess….” I answer, wondering why she’d written it down instead of telling me, but maybe she’s deaf and trying to avoid burdening others with her problems and I’m being an insensitive idiot….

 

“Shouldn’t we leave now?” Emilia asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.

 

“Um…. yes…. sorry!” I answer, dragging her out the door and beginning our tour of the building.

 

* * *

 

“....um, and this is the nurse’s office, and…. um, the principal is across the hall, and there’s a glass bridge on the floor above us….” I ramble, hoping Emilia doesn’t think I’m being too obvious or hard to understand, for she hasn’t said anything on our tour….

 

“Can you take me there? I want to ask you something.” Emilia says.

 

“Um…. sure! You can do anything to me!” I answer, leading her up a flight of stairs. “Ah…. what do you want to ask me….”

 

“....is there anything you wish for, Rasia Galante?” she answers, sitting down on a bench.

 

_Maybe. I want to stop dreaming of that house and my sister’s death, but you can’t know that…._

“Why are you asking me this?” I ask.

 

“.....nevermind. I’m playing a game of watching the world…. and can we go back to class now?” she rambles, and is silent for the rest of the day.

 

_She’s a strange person. A strange, beautiful, mysterious person…._

* * *

 

I try to focus in class today, but my mind is filled with dreams and memories. I attempt to take notes, but the page fills with drawings of my past and present, ink flowing from my pen like blood.

 

I shouldn’t be doing this. I shouldn’t be so wrapped up in something that’ll never happen again.

 

Someone taps me on the shoulder, and I flinch, dropping the pen under my desk as apologies begin to form in my head of things I’ve never done, but I should apologize anyway, for I’m-

 

“Rasia? Class is over right now, and you’re coming with me, right?” Lillian asks, as I try to hide my drawings by stuffing them into my bag.

 

“.....um…. yes! I’m sorry!” I exclaim, grabbing my bag and heading out the door with her. “Where are we going?”

 

“.....you choose. I don’t really care, as long as it makes you happy….” she answers. “What were you drawing?”

 

_Stuff I don’t want you to know about. Stuff I don’t want anyone to know about._

I’m about to answer when the world suddenly darkens, transporting Lillian and me into a golden cage. There’s an army of strange things that look like headless men floating outside of it, which are armed with scissors and knives and slowly closing in on us and I keep thinking about how I’m going to die….

 

_Victoria, if I’m dead…. don’t blame yourself. You don’t have to always be strong…._

Lillian is trying to find a way out of the cage and appears to be pulling something out of her bag, and I should be doing something, I shouldn’t be so useless, but I’m paralyzed by fear…. just like I was back then…..

 

“ROSSO PHANTASMA!”

 

 


	2. Episode 2

_What?! What’s going on?_

Ribbons appear out of nowhere, twisting themselves into walls and shields as a woman in white wielding a saber appears out of nowhere and begins gracefully fighting off the army of headless men…. who are still closing in on us, but the shields are deflecting all of their attacks….

 

“Who’s that?! She’s amazing!” Lillian exclaims as the woman continues fighting her way towards us and I desperately hope that she’s going to save us, I don’t want to have gotten all my hopes up for nothing…..

 

_….you were an idealist, once upon a time…._

_Yeah, and then I was kidnapped and almost died._

I have to stop thinking about that house. I have no desire to bother Lillian with any of my personal problems, and she should not be worrying about me at all.

 

“....okay, she’s in here?” the woman in white says as the ribbons and cage fall away, and we’re back in the real world, as if the whole time Lillian and I were there was just an illusion….

 

“Thanks for saving us! Where were we?!” Lillian exclaims.

 

“....that was the barrier of a witch, which is a conglomeration of negative emotions. Most people aren’t aware of it’s presence, except for those who have the misfortune to be caught up in it upon its formation….. you were lucky that I was able to save you.” she answers, placing something in her bag.

 

_Why exactly would she need to carry a headset around?_

“How were you able to save us from that?” Lillian asks.

 

“....ah, if I were to explain all that to you, we’d be here all day…. we can just go to my apartment, if that’s okay with you two?” she answers.

 

“I’d prefer if you’d tell us at my house, for I don’t want to worry my brother, but it’s fine if we go there.” Lillian says, and the two of them begin to walk away from me. I’m about to join them when someone taps me on the shoulder.

 

“Ah…. I’m sorry!” I exclaim as I turn around.

 

“Is this truly the world you desire, Rasia? Is this the life you wish to live?” Emilia asks, staring into space.

 

_When did you get here? What are you talking about?_

I’m about to ask her exactly what she’s talking about, but Lillian’s calling out my name and I rush towards her, and I really should say something, I don’t want to come off as a rude and self-absorbed person….

 

“Um…. uh, it’s nice to meet you…. what’s your name….” I ramble, finally catching up to them.

 

“Nice to meet you too, Rasia. I’m Katia Braginskaya.” she answers.

 

“....um…. um…. you….. um…. don’t happen, um…. to…. have a sister….” I ramble, trying to get my mind out of that house, for it isn’t a common name, but they’re probably not related and she isn’t crazy and not going to hurt anyone and she can’t know anything about what happened to me, and admittedly half of it’s my fault anyways and-

 

“I’m…. not on good terms with her, but I do have a younger sister….” Katia answers, and I hope someone’s going to change the subject, because I’m no longer on this road, I’m back in that house again, and I need to leave, but there’s no escape except for death and she’s right, isn’t she? That I’m such a horribly weak person who deserves to be punished for everything I’ve ever done wrong…..

 

“Rasia? Are you alright?” Lillian asks.

 

“....yes…. I’m sorry….” I answer, and the rest of our walk to Lillian’s house is silent.

 

* * *

 

_To whomever is walking into my house right now: if you are not Lilli, go away before I find you. AND DON’T YOU DARE LAYING A HAND ON MY SISTER._

_If you are Lilli, you may enter. I’m currently in the hospital again._

_-Vash Zwingli._

_PS: If you are not Lilli and read the last line, I’m still well enough to hunt you down and find out what you did to her. I’ll make sure of that._

“.....he was fine yesterday…. and don’t worry about the note, he’s a perfectly nice person.” Lillian rambles as she pulls a key out of her bag.

 

_I guess he’d get along well with my sister…. um…. I’ve been out after school with Lillian before, and she doesn’t seem to care that much, as long as I’m still alive…._

The three of us walk into her living room and sit down around a short glass table. Katia pulls something out of her bag, which appears to be a photo of herself and another blonde girl with glasses who looks kind of familiar….

 

“....who’s that?” I ask.

 

“A…. friend of mine from college whom I share an apartment with.” she answers, stuffing the photo back into her bag and staring at the table. “Do you have any tea?”

 

“I can make you two some if you want.” Lillian says, walking into her kitchen. I attempt to tell her that she shouldn’t inconvenience herself, but the words get stuck in my throat as Katia pulls a glass orb out of her bag.

 

I should say something, but everything I can think of get stuck in my throat….

 

“Anyways, thanks for the tea…. and do either of you have questions?” Katia asks, as Lillian returns from the kitchen with a pair of teacups on a tray.

 

You really didn’t have to make me anything, I’m fine…. unless the second cup’s yours, which it probably is…. and I’m-

 

“How exactly were you able to fight off the witch?” Lillian asks, shoving the second teacup towards me.

 

“....well, as witches are born from despair, magical girls are born from a wish.” Katia answers, grabbing the glass orb on the table. “Once you make your wish, you become a magical girl, and your duty as one is to fight witches and prevent despair’s spread.”

 

“So we’re becoming heroines of justice?” Lillian asks, as I try to find a way to tell Katia that whatever she knows about me from her sister is true, that I am a weak person who still lives in memories, even though she knows that they’ll never happen again….

 

“It’s not as…. idealistic…. as you make it out to be, for you’re going to spend the rest of your lives fighting off invisible manifestations of despair…. but I suppose that’s a nice way to put it.” Katia answers.

 

“....if I made a wish right now, would I become one?” Lillian asks, as I pick up the teacup from the tray and stare into the tea, trying to figure out if I should just leave, but there’s a part of me that wants to remain here, in this magical world…. and I suppose I could wish away my dreams?

 

“....if you learn nothing else from what I’m telling you…. don’t impulsively make your wish. Otherwise, you’ll be left with nothing but regret and despair…..” Katia answers, staring at a spot above my head.

 

“.....why?” I ask, even though it’s probably going to be something she doesn’t want to ever bring up, and I guess wishing away my dreams would be a horribly selfish idea, but everything else I can think of is either selfish or crazy….

 

“....it’s a long story. So…. if I haven’t scared the two of you out of becoming magical girls yet, I’ll see you tomorrow after my classes end.” Katia says, walking out the door with me and leading me towards my apartment building.

 

I’m about to thank her when I realize that I never told her where I lived.

 

* * *

 

“.....yes, I don’t recall ever ordering computer programming manuals.” my sister rambles as I attempt to do my homework, but keep getting distracted by magical girls and hypothetical futures as art pours onto the pages.

 

“How was today?” she asks as I stuff the papers into my bag. Even though none of them are of the past, I still don’t want to worry her…. and I can’t tell her about anything that happened today. At all.

 

“Rasia? Is everything-” she begins, before I cut her off.

 

“Everything’s fine, don’t worry. Where’d you get the programming manuals?” I ask, hoping to distract her from probing any further into my life. She doesn’t need to know anything…. and I really don’t need to know how people use textbooks to cope with grief, even though she keeps telling me that someone sent them to us by mistake.

 

She opens up the missing persons website on the computer as I fall asleep, dreaming of pasts and presents and futures.

 

_“Rasia Galante, what do you wish for?”_

“E-” I begin, before I fall off of a cliff and into the arms of a woman with silver hair, only for her to disintegrate as I keep falling and falling…. only to land in the arms of a woman in pink, who is laughing, for she finally has me now, there’s nothing I can do to escape….

 

* * *

 

I should stop dreaming. I’m safe now, but I can’t remove my mind from that house at all.

 

Lillian’s talking me about something, but all I hear are laughs and the words ‘I love you’ over and over again, and how abuse is love, so isn’t it-

 

“Rasia?! I’m sorry, but can you hear me? Is everything alright?” she exclaims, pulling me out of that house and into reality, and I have to stay here, for she shouldn’t worry about me….

 

“....yes! What…. um, do you want to wish for?!” I blurt out, hoping to distract her.

 

“.....I don’t know if I should wish for it, but…. nevermind. You?” she answers as we walk into class.

 

_I don’t want to tell you. It’s impulsive and selfish and probably going to backfire, because I’m an idiot._

Emilia’s either writing something down or staring into space when I walk into class and take my seat. I feel like I should ask her something, but I don’t want to interrupt her work and the words keep getting stuck in my throat.

 

The rest of class passes by in silence.

 

* * *

 

“Will Rasia Galante and Lillian Zwingli please report to the main office?” the loudspeaker blares, pulling me out of my thoughts. I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong, but there’s always a chance that I’ve forgotten something, something I’ve done that ends up leading to murder….

 

“.....Rasia? I’m assuming Katia’s here for us?” Lillian asks, and I’m an idiot, for we’re becoming heroines of justice…. actually, I’m a weak person who doesn’t have the mindset necessary to save people, I’ve always been protected by others…..

 

Lillian grabs my hand and drags me to the office, as my bag almost hits her knee. Normally I’d tell her to let go of me, but I don’t mind this time. It’s like she’s anchoring me in the real world, preventing me from falling into the abyss of my memories…. and Katia’s standing in the office, waiting for us.

 

“.....as I was saying, I’m a local college student who is interested in mentoring them, and I’m sorry if this is during their class. I’ll make sure to come in when it ends next time.” she says, walking out of the door with us.

 

“I wish-” Lillian exclaims, before Katia cuts her off.

 

“I don’t want you to make an impulsive wish! Are you one hundred percent sure that you didn’t forget anything? Is there any other way to solve it?!” she exclaims, and I want to ask her why she’s reacting in this way, but it’s probably tied up with her wish and stuff she doesn’t want to talk about and her sister….

 

“....I’m not sure, but if you’re so insistent on me not wishing just yet, can I pick up something from my house?” she asks.

 

“Okay, sure. Is there anything you want to bring as well?” Katia asks, turning towards me.

 

“Um…. ah…. it’s in my…. bag….” I ramble, pulling something out at random and hoping that she won’t see me as useless and superfluous, even though-

 

“Wow, that’s amazing! She’s an amazing artist, and there’s more stuff in her bag!” Lillian exclaims, as I hope that the image I pulled out isn’t one of the past, she doesn’t need to find out about that at all, no one does….

 

“Would you mind showing us more of it?” Katia asks, as I shove the paper into the bag.

 

“....um, wouldn’t it be easier if I showed it to you at Lillian’s?” I ask, hoping that they’ll forget about everything, for they don’t need to see anything about who I was in the past…. and who I still am.

 

“Okay! Let’s go!” Lillian exclaims, grabbing my hand as the three of us set off for her house.

 

* * *

 

The note from yesterday is still pinned on her front door. I want to ask her if it’s normal for her brother to spend long periods of time in the hospital, but I’m probably going to come off as really nosy and rude, she probably doesn’t want to talk about it….

 

“Anyways, I’ll be getting it, and you two can wait here. Do you want any tea?” Lillian asks, leading us into her kitchen.

 

“No, I don’t want to accidentally damage any of the art I’m going to see.” Katia says, taking a seat as I try to find some excuse not to show her it, but I don’t want to be rude and give her a bad impression of me, even though she already has one from her sister…. which I can’t make worse. I can’t show her that I’m a bad person….

“Oh, right. Rasia, I’m sorry for forgetting about that….” Lillian rambles before walking down her hallway and I try to tell her that she doesn’t need to apologise, I don’t deserve her attention…. or anyone’s attention, for that matter, as I just end up killing people and being useless….

 

“So, what are you going to show me?” Katia asks, pulling me out of my thoughts. I begin to rummage through my bag, pulling out images at random, desperately hoping that they’re not from the past before I place them onto the table, hoping she won’t find out anything new about me and my weakness…. and her voice pulls me out of my thoughts.

 

“I didn’t know you wrote as well….” she rambles, picking up one of the drawings, and I try to come up with some excuse to get her to stop reading, for 99% of the stuff I write deals with my memories and all she’s going to get is even more evidence that supports her sister’s view of me…. which is true….

 

“....um, ah… what do you think?!” I blurt out, hoping to distract her from reading any further.

 

“It’s really good, if a bit disturbing…. and, on another note, I feel like you’d get along well with my roommate?” she asks, handing me several of the pages, which I quickly stuff in my bag…. and she’s probably just being polite, I doubt she’s telling me the truth….

 

“Ah…. can you tell me a bit more about her….” I ramble, removing the rest of my art from the table, hoping that she’ll forget all about it and that the conversation’s been diverted far enough away from me and that Lillian shows up soon….

 

“She’s a programming student who’s also an attempted musician?” Katia rambles, pulling out her phone and showing me a photo of someone with short blonde hair and glasses..... I would like to meet this person, if she wouldn’t mind me using her as a proxy for someone who is dead…. which’d creep her out, so I guess it’d be better for me not to meet her.

 

“I’m back!” Lillian exclaims, walking towards us and placing a gun on the table…. and why does she have one, why does she own this…. and she’s not going to use this on me, I know that, but still…. I have to calm down, I can’t overreact to this….

 

“Don’t worry, I know how to use it.” she says, folding her hands in front of her. “I just thought that if you were training us in combat against witches, that I’d show it to you?”

 

“....okay then…. if you insist….” Katia rambles, picking up the gun and somehow duplicating it with her ribbons as a chill goes through the air.

 

_That’s strange….. get your mind out of that house! No one here’s going to hurt you!_

“Does anyone know why it just got really cold?” Lillian asks, so the chill has nothing to do with my memories, but why did it happen…. why is it so cold in here….

 

“Once you become aware of this world…. you’ll start to feel a chill upon the formation of witches that are within a certain radius of your location…..” Katia explains as she sprints out the door and Lillian and I follow her.

 


	3. Episode 3

“Are you sure you want to do this? Are you one hundred and ten percent sure that you want to join me?!” Katia exclaims as we keep running and the world grows colder and stranger….

 

“Of course! Why are you so worried about us?” Lillian cheerfully exclaims, grabbing my hand and preventing me from thinking about how I’m not as strong as her or Katia…. and I begin to smile.

 

Maybe I can become a heroine of justice. Maybe I can stop living in the past.

 

_Yeah, right. You’ll go back to blaming yourself in a couple of seconds. Or when she lets go of you, for you just exist to use other people as your anchors to reality….._

The world denatures around us, turning into a barrier that looks like a cross between a bridge and train station…. and there’s a silvery man standing at it’s back, shooting wires and wheels out of his hands….. I shouldn’t have no combat ability whatsoever, I shouldn’t be-

 

“.....anyways, the core of a witch is most often humanoid, the people around us have no idea that this is even occurring at all, and there’s no one trapped in here at all….” Katia rambles, forming a barrier out of ribbons that’s deflecting the wheels and wires onto the man, and I need to make a wish, need to actually be useful in some way or another….

 

“Stay here! No matter what, I don’t want you two to die! Just watch me!” she exclaims, catapulting herself over the wall, her headset falling into my hands. Lillian begins to follow her, and I should join her as well, but the headset’s distracting me for some reason….

 

“Hello?! Katia, can you hear me?! Katia Dimitrova Braginskaya, are you able to hear me or not?!” the headset exclaims, and the voice at the other end sounds familiar, like I’ve heard it in a memory….

 

_I can’t worry her…._

“....um, this is…. Rasia Galante…. I’m with Katia….” I say, putting the headset on as she summons an army of swords made out of ribbons towards the witch’s core, pinning him to the wall. The person at the other end is silent, and I probably ended up annoying her, or she just didn’t hear me, but either way-

 

“.....anyways, is she alright? Please tell me that she hasn’t gotten her head blown off or something….” she asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.

 

“....she’s fine…. who exactly are you.....” I answer, even though I’m probably being rude again and bothering her, as she probably doesn’t want to talk to me, for she’s silent again. The sounds of guns and swords surround me, and I should be there, I shouldn’t be hiding behind the wall…..

 

“I’m her roommate and close friend….” she responds, as I finally make up my mind not to be useless and fling myself over the wall…. except I can’t move for some reason, it’s like someone’s paralyzed me and no matter what I try, I can’t get over that wall….

 

“.....I’m only doing what I have to do….” Emilia rambles, popping up out of nowhere.

 

_You’re a magical girl too?! How did you get here…. and who are you talking to?_

I try to ask her, but the only thing that comes out of my mouth is a string of ramblings about my uselessness and how I should just make a wish already, but I’d probably just screw that up too, so I should just die or something…. and she doesn’t need to know that, no one needs to think that I’m anything other than perfectly happy…..

 

“....stop lying about yourself. I don’t want you to die….” she answers, as the world fades back to normal. Katia and Lillian rush towards me, and I hope that they haven’t heard anything or think I’m useless because of this….

 

“....so that’s where my headset went?” Katia asks, pulling it off of my head and putting it on. “As you made the very intelligent decision to not throw yourself into a combat situation….”

 

“I understand that it might’ve worried you, but I’m capable of using a gun….” Lillian answers, walking towards me.

 

“....you can meet her tomorrow…. um, and yes, I understand that, but this is your first time in any sort of actual combat situation and I don’t want you to die!” Katia exclaims, grabbing both of us and walking me to my apartment, as Lillian attempts to justify her actions.

 

_At least you aren’t superfluous. Unlike myself…._

* * *

 

_What do you wish for? What should you wish for?_

The answers to those questions pour onto the page like blood as I keep writing and drawing my future, or at least what I hope my future’ll be once I make a wish and no longer become useless… but the past keeps getting mixed in as well until the two of them blend together so thoroughly, I can no longer tell which is which anymore…. and my sister’s home from work.

 

“If you could make a wish, what’d you wish for?” I blurt out, hoping she won’t find out anything, for she doesn’t need to worry about me again, as everything’s fine now…. right?

 

“I…. nevermind. It’s completely irrational…. and why are you asking me this?” she answers, turning towards me.

 

“I’m just curious.” I answer, hoping that she isn’t to ask me anything else about this, and yes, I am hiding things from you, but I don’t want you to be worried and you also hide things from me because you want to protect me…. like how you’d most likely wish to revive someone from the dead.

 

_Explain the scars, then._

That’s the explanation behind them, how I never found out about them until I accidentally walked into the bathroom at the wrong time…. and somehow that drips onto the page, even though no one needs to see that, the things we hide from others….

 

* * *

 

“There’s someone here to see you?” my sister asks, waking me up. I must’ve fallen asleep while drawing again, I hope I didn’t miss anything…. and Lillian’s standing right outside my door.

 

“Ms. Laurinaitis, I’m a friend of Rasia’s, and I hope you don’t mind this.” she answers, as I grab my bag and umbrella before walking out the door with her. It’s both raining and incredibly cold outside, but I don’t know if that because of the weather or my heightened awareness to despair….

 

_Thankfully, you have someone right next to you who’s preventing you from jumping off a cliff. Until she lets go of you…. and she’s been strangely quiet today, don’t you think?_

 

“....is everything alright?” I ask, hoping that I’m not bothering her….

 

“I guess? I’m just a bit worried about my brother….” she answers, tightening her grip on my hand as we walk into class, only releasing me as she takes her seat. I walk towards mine, and Emilia’s taking notes on something…. which probably has nothing to do with me, but she knows more about me than most people on this planet….

 

_Oh, and Katia’s roommate knows all that stuff about you as well? So that’s two people who know about how weak you really are?_

I don’t want to think about that, don’t want to think about anything anymore and just spend the rest of today drawing, even though I should be taking notes. I pull out a piece of paper and begin to write, ignoring the fact that it’s already half-filled with unfinished art….

 

_I don’t know if you should wish for anything….._

Emilia places another sheet of paper over mine, and she’s probably read what I’ve written…. but she probably isn’t going to change her opinion about me, and all I’m doing is giving her more evidence to support how she already sees me.

 

_What did you wish for? How long have you been one?_

I probably shouldn’t have asked her the first question, as she’s probably not going to want to talk about it, but I guess it’d be good to get an alternate perspective on this topic so I don’t throw my life away?

 

_It’s…. a very long story. Sorry…. as for the second one…. I’m not sure._

As expected, she has no desire to talk to me about her life, and class goes on.

 

* * *

 

“....do you mind if I visit the hospital today? I’d really want to join you and Katia, but….” Lillian rambles as class ends and we walk out the door together.

 

“I don’t mind….” I answer, as Katia walks towards us, talking to someone over her headset, some random person who now knows the truth about me…. and she’s most likely told Katia everything I said to warn her about me, for her sister’s assessment is the true one…..

 

“....ah, it’s exploding?! Right now?! Okay…. I’m coming, and…. if you insist on me bringing them with me, then I’ll do so…..” she rambles, grabbing my hand and beginning to run somewhere. I want to tell her to let go of me, but I keep seeing her sister instead for some reason, and she’s laughing….

 

_She loves me she loves me not she loves me she loves me not she loves me…. and you say you don’t have Stockholm Syndrome._

“I know this is an emergency, but I need to visit my brother. I’m sorry, but I have to go to the hospital right now!” Lillian exclaims, pulling me out of my thoughts and into reality….

 

“....we’re on our way to the hospital. There’s a rapidly-expanding witch in there!” Katia yells.

 

* * *

 

The first thing I notice when we reach the hospital is that there’s a giant parasitic worm growing out of the door. Its mouth is open, and its empty black eyes are staring at us, as is trying to lure us in so it can kill us, just like it killed everyone else in the hospital….

 

_Stop blowing this out of proportion! You’re here to save people, not panic and throw off Lillian and Katia because you have no combat skills at all!_

Somehow, I keep running, following them into the hospital while the world denatures around me, turning into a rainbow-colored hallway with miniature versions of those worms lining the walls and bodies lining the floor, lying face-down….

 

_…..because I killed them, just like I killed her, even though…. I couldn’t have foreseen her death, but I could’ve realized that would be the logical course of action, so it is my fault….._

_Why don’t you do the right thing? Go back in time and change who dies._

There’s a  staircase at the end of this hallway, which I can hopefully use to escape…. but they all lead to even more bad choices and deaths and torture, so the only actual escape is to die…. and Lillian’s sprinting up it, seemingly oblivious to both the barrier and Katia.

 

_Wait…. what’s going on?! Where am I?!_

Impulsively, I run after her…. and I shouldn’t be an emotional wreck right now, for I’m supposed to be happy after leaving an abusive situation for good, but I continue to dream and be superfluous and live in the past….

 

“....I’m going to save you…. okay? Don’t worry, I’m not putting myself in danger.” she says, talking to herself as ribbons twist into guns near us, immobilizing the worms in the walls and preventing them from killing us….

 

_Who are you talking to? Why should it matter who she’s talking to?!_

Lillian keeps making her way up the stairs and I follow her, even though I should be saving everyone else, but I don’t know I can get them all out of here and I don’t want her to die. I know I’m being selfish…. but….

 

_Do you act for the needs of yourself or others? Even when the second option leads to death?_

We reach the top of the stairs, and there’s only one person on this floor. I want to keep running and save him, but his thoughts seem to be forming some sort of barrier against us…..

 

_“.…I can admit that I’m going to die. I would like to be discharged from this hospital right now!”_

_“Yes, I do not want my sister to be informed that I’m terminally ill! She needs to think that I can still protect her!”_

_“.....oh, I’m being violent? Tell me, how the hell am I supposed to react to finding out that I’m going to die, that my sister is going to put two and two together sometime or another and realize this, that I can’t protect her….. so you think I don’t have license to react in this manner!?”_

_“Why only her?! Um…. let’s see…. the fact that I’m her legal guardian, and I am technically the entire reason she’s not dead right now! I have spent the majority of my life protecting her, and once I’m dead…. well….”_

 

There are gunshots flying everywhere, and I don’t know if they’re caused by Katia or Lillian or the guy on the floor or someone else entirely…. I have to save people, I have to save them…. but I can’t move…. someone’s paralyzed me….

 

For a brief second, it’s like time’s frozen. Then, the room explodes into thousands of pieces, but none of us are injured for some reason, we’re just flung backwards, as if time’s slowed down…. and Katia’s headset somehow lands in my hand.

 

“....Katia? What happened? Could whomever’s on the other end tell me…. if…. she’s alive…” her roommate asks me…. and…. no, she’s too powerful to die, she was even capable of sending her weapons onto the other floors and duplicating Lillian’s gun with a single touch….

 

_Keep telling yourself that._

There’s a body right in front of me. She has blonde hair, and is wearing all white….


	4. Interlude 1

“Anyways, I hope you’ll enjoy catching up on everything, Katia! See you soon!” my sister exclaims, as I put down the phone and exhale.

 

My younger sister sounds perfectly sane. Ever since I’ve moved into my apartment, I’ve been resisting my urge to run back home and check on her, make sure she hasn’t succumbed to the degenerative mental condition that claimed both of our parents and younger sister…. but she’s fine.

 

_Thank God._

Luckily, I have the next few days off from class…. which gives me more time than I expected to spend with her.

 

* * *

 

She’s still living in our old house, which she knows like the back of her hand. I begin to wonder why she’s still here, for it’s an enormous space for just one person…. but that doesn’t matter. I’m seeing my sister again for the first time in who knows how long, and she’s still herself.

 

“Katia! I’m so glad you’re here!” she exclaims, running down the hallway the second I open the door and hugging me.

 

“.....me too. I have the next few days off from class, so do you where I can put my bag, Anya?” I answer as she releases me. She’s gotten a bit taller since when I last saw her…. she’s taller than me now.

 

_Time flies, doesn’t it? If someone saw the two of you in public, they’d think she was older._

Anya’s giving me a series of directions to her guest room, which make perfect sense to her, but sound like absolute nonsense to me. Still, I attempt to follow them, even though this house was most likely designed by some crazy maze-addict.

_I feel like I’ve been running in circles…. and when did she start collecting shovels?!_

I suppose I could try opening doors at random, and I grab the next one I see…. which leads to another hallway with even more doors behind it.

 

_….okay, I’ll just tell her to put my bags in the guest room when I find her. How does she remember where anything is?!_

I close the door behind me as I attempt to retrace my steps…. and someone’s crying. Or screaming, but I’m probably imagining it all…. right?

 

“Are you alright?” I call out, and no one answers.

 

* * *

 

“Katia! You’re back! Where were you?!” my sister exclaims as I finally find her, and she’s finished cooking dinner while I was stumbling around her house, searching for the guest room….

 

“When did you start collecting shovels?” I blurt out as I sit down, dropping my bag onto the floor.

 

“.....shovels? That’s a very strange hobby for people to indulge in, don’t you think?” she asks, beginning to smile as she sits down across from me.

 

_Okay, this is more evidence that you were probably walking in circles the entire time._

“Nevermind, I just got lost in your house. Can you take my bags to your guest room?” I ask, and she springs out of her chair, grabbing my bags and running down the hall…. she’s just being her usual overenergetic self, and she’s definitely improved her cooking abilities since I left….

 

_She’s not going to do anything crazy! You’re just dizzy from spending who knows how long wandering in circles and hallucinating people screaming!_

“I’m back! What do you think of my cooking, Katia?” my sister exclaims, finally returning from her excursion to the guest room with my bag…. and there’s blood on her hand?!

 

_You’re just being overconcerned about her sanity. Calm down, Katia…._

“It’s improved quite a bit. Do you want me to teach you anything?” I ask, staring at the floor.

 

“Sure! I’ll just show you around a bit later, I don’t want you to get lost again….” she rambles, and her hand’s clean now….

 

_What if Anya isn’t the one who’s susceptible to insanity, but you?! You’ve always been so concerned about your sister, but what if you’re the one who’s going to fall into the abyss your parents and Natalia fell into, and you won’t even realize it until you kill her…._

“Katia, are you alright?” she asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.

 

“....yes, I’m fine, I just need to…. get something….” I answer, running out of her dining room, for I feel like the walls are closing in on me for some reason and I have to escape….

 

_Neither of you suffer from any sort of mental condition! You’re perfectly fine!_

There’s a door to my right, and I yank it open…. unmasking a flight of stairs. I honestly don’t know why I chose to run into her basement, but I needed to calm down and stop thinking that I was insane…. and no one else would be in here.

 

_I am genuinely surprised that I didn’t trip down these stairs, why are they so slippery…._

Finally, I reach the bottom of the steps, and begin to search for the lightswitch, for it’s incredibly dark in here…. luckily, my hand brushes against it, illuminating the room….

 

The first thing I notice is that she hasn’t bothered to finish her basement. The second thing I notice is that there’s blood everywhere, rivers of it staining the floor along with glass…. and there’s someone lying in the midst of it all, a girl with blonde hair…. who I could be hallucinating, but….

 

“Hello? Are you real?” I ask, trying to figure out what’s going on. Who is this person, and how did she end up here?!

 

“....I suppose I am…. even if you think differently?” she rambles, and I have to help her, get her out of here….

 

“Who are you? What’s your name, how did you get here, and is there anything I can do to help you?!” I exclaim, walking towards her and attempting to figure out where she’s injured and how to help her recover from this all….

 

“....you’ve forgotten already? I mean, you forget I exist half the time, but….” she rambles, making no sense at all, it’s almost like she’s assuming I’m some other person….

 

“Ah, I’m Katia Braginskaya, and can you please tell me how you ended up in my sister’s basement so I can help you?!” I exclaim.

 

“....oh, she knows everything…. in short, I’m an idiot, and that’s all you really need to know.” she answers, her voice growing weaker and weaker…. and I am trying to put all the pieces together about who this girl is…. but I have to help her first.

 

“Anya?! Do you know where the medical supplies are?!” I exclaim, hoping that my sister’ll hear me, for there is someone dying in her basement and she most likely has no clue about this…. right?

 

“.....why should she care? I deserve it, according to her….” the girl rambles.

_Wait…. what!?_

_When did this happen?! When did she start falling into the abyss, and why did I never notice anything?!_

“....so, if you’re interested in conversing with me while I die…. I’m Evelin Von Bock, and my life is incredibly uninteresting?” she asks.

 

_I should’ve stayed home! I shouldn’t have left! Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come back to visit, and found out that she’s jumped off the cliffs of insanity!_

_Why did I let this happen?! Why am I so lost in my thoughts that I can’t even attempt to help her!_

_Why am I such a horrible person! Why did I enable my sister to murder someone! Why didn’t I help Anya before she did anything?!_

“I’m sorry!” I exclaim, and she doesn’t respond…. this person who I let my sister kill and did nothing about it, nothing to stop her from this…. and I couldn’t even stop this mess from occurring, so what does that make me?

 

_“Is there anything you wish for? Just make a wish….”_

* * *

 

I made a wish to save her life. Somehow, it worked.

 

I left Anya’s house the next day, claiming that I’d misread my schedule and hoping she wouldn’t notice that I was calling a mental hospital, for I couldn’t let her hurt anyone else….

 

_So this is how you make up for not noticing her disintegrating sanity._

_Who would she have been if she didn’t end up falling into the abyss? Who was Evelin, before your sister decided to kill her?_

At least, in Evelin’s case, I’ve given her another chance to live her life…. the life she would’ve had if my sister didn’t kill her.

 

_So she deserves a second chance. Do you? For you are responsible for her death, you know…._

* * *

 

I started noticing the witches about a week after I’d made my wish, for I was preoccupied with trying to help Evelin put her life back together and my classwork and mental hospitals….

 

_The more I find out about her, the more I hate myself for not noticing anything about Anya._

There are so many things I find out about completely by accident. Like how it was my duty to fight invisible manifestations of despair, and that I could create things out of ribbons…. and that Evelin wasn’t the only person who my sister had tried to kill.

 

It was just a throwaway comment from her, sandwiched in the midst of programming jargon that I’d given up on trying to understand, that caused me to find out about her sisters.

 

* * *

 

“....oh, and Katia reminds me of some hybrid of my sisters….” she rambles, as I walk out of the kitchen.

 

_Wait, what?!_

_How the hell did I forget about her family?! I’ve technically kidnapped her!_

“....what?!” I exclaim, and she doesn’t respond.

 

“Who are they, where is your family right now, how can I contact them so I can apologize for kidnapping you, and why didn’t you tell me any of this?!” I exclaim, and I’m probably overreacting….

 

“....I didn’t want to worry you….” she rambles.

 

“How would telling me about your family worry me?” I answer, trying to figure out what’s going on….

 

“....because…. of your sister? That’s how I met them?” she responds, as the world begins to blur around me….

_…..oh god…. so, Evelin isn’t the only person who Anya’s kidnapped and tried to kill…. there’re more people, more people who I’ve left in the exact same situation…._

_Why didn’t you save everyone? Aren’t you responsible for everything your sister does?! You’re not a good person! You claim to be a good person, but all you do is cause despair!_

_Why don’t you just die…. just like you deserve…._

* * *

 

“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to hurt you!” Evelin exclaims as I open my eyes.

 

_Why the hell are you apologizing?! You aren’t responsible for at least one murder!_

“....why don’t you hate me….” I ramble.

 

“Why should I hate you?! You saved my life!” she yells, as if trying to convince me that I’m a good person…. but she’s wrong.

 

“....I let you die, because I didn’t want to believe my sister’s sanity was slowly disintegrating, I didn’t save anyone else from that situation, so I’m indirectly responsible for-” I begin, before she cuts me off.

 

“You aren’t responsible for anything she does! Don’t blame yourself for things you can’t control!” she exclaims, grabbing my hand.

 

_….how are you so calm about all this?! Unless…. okay, that just got really creepy….._

“Isn’t it enough to say you’ve saved a single person, instead of beating yourself up for not saving everyone else?!” she exclaims….

 

_…..so, in short….. I guess I’ve done something good by saving her life…. but does one good thing balance out the bad things I’ve let happen?_

“....I want to know why you’re so calm about me not saving them.” I say, tightening my grip on her hand.

 

“....you didn’t know anything about that, so you can’t be blamed for not saving them…. I never bothered to tell you anything, as I didn’t want to worry you, so… who do we blame now?” she asks.

 

_Not you! Why are you doing this?! You shouldn’t…. oh, I am being a hypocrite…._

I can’t change anything that happened in the past. But I can change our future. 

 

 


	5. Episode 4

I’m dreaming. I have to be dreaming….. it’s just another dream, and I’ll wake up from it all….

 

“.....this isn’t a safe world…. or maybe it was inevitable that people die and no one finds the body….” Emilia rambles, popping up out of nowhere and grabbing my hand…. so…. it’s real, Katia’s dead…. and I should’ve made a wish, for I was just holding her back and being useless, I could’ve saved her if I just made a wish….

 

“.....and this is the final fate of us all. You’ll die, and no one will know, for they won’t find the body…..” she rambles, as we begin to walk.

 

_….regardless of my situation, this is how I’ll die…. I guess I deserve it…._

“....are you sure that this is what you want your life to be? To become an unsung heroine…. but if you left this world behind, you wouldn’t be in danger….” she rambles, knocking on my front door.

 

I want to tell her that I’m going to end up as a superfluous person regardless of what I do, but my sister opens the door before I can say anything….

 

“Ms. Laurinaitis, we were just at a funeral, and I’m sorry if she worried you….” Emilia says as she drops me off and I walk through the door….

 

_I wasn’t at a funeral! I don’t know anyone who’s died in the past few days, and I’m perfectly fine!_

* * *

 

I don’t know if my sister’s trying to talk to me or if she just wants to leave me alone with my grief, for I keep seeing dead people every time I look up from my art….

 

_For all I know, she could be yelling at me for killing someone, while I’m oblivious to it all…._

I doubt she’s going to discover the truth anytime soon, that I let someone die again…. and I don’t want her to find out. I’m probably hiding too many things from her, but she does not need to know that I’ve fallen into a world filled with invisible conglomerations of despair….

 

_Knowing her…. she’d try and protect me from it all…. and die. Which is what everyone does._

The page fills with images of dead people, the future fates of her and Lillian and Emilia if they keep trying to save me…. I should be a stronger person, and yet I’m still making excuses for not being one, still stuck in guilt and memories and mazes which I must escape from….

 

_“I love you, you know that?!”_

“NO!” I scream, even though she’s in a mental hospital and can’t hurt anyone else…. actually, that’s wrong, for I’m still stuck with every single second I was stuck in that house with her, and they’re all reminders of weakness and failure….

 

_Why don’t you turn your weapons onto yourself? The pen is mightier than the sword….._

* * *

 

“Rasia?! Listen to me, what’s going on?!” my sister exclaims as I open my eyes…. and my arms are covered in bandages.

 

_How did that happen? The last thing I remember doing is drawing….._

“I know that you don’t want to tell me, but what did you do last night?!” she exclaims, grabbing my shoulders and staring into my eyes. She’s crying…..

 

“.....I have no idea.” I answer, trying to find some place to look that isn’t anywhere near her eyes, for they’re unsettling me….

 

_Have I seen her cry before? Victoria?_

It’s raining outside, the world’s in mourning…. and my sister’s pulling the bandages off of my arms, unmasking a maze of scars…. I want to ask her what happened, but the words get stuck in my throat, choking me….

 

_Or they could’ve just been there the whole time and you never noticed?_

I grab my umbrella, notepad, and bag before walking out the door. Right before I leave, my sister hugs me for no reason….. I don’t know why she’s doing this, it’s unlike her to be so emotional….

 

“I…. don’t want to lose you….” she says, releasing me from her arms as I begin to leave.

 

* * *

 

Lillian’s not in school today.

 

I attempt to take notes in class, but I’m still trapped in a mental prison with no escape.

 

_Why don’t you wish for oblivion? To forget everything and stop dreaming, once and for all…._

_Yet…. how much would I forget? Would I still remember who I was? Would I still be the same person, for so much of who I am is built on tragedy and despair…._

_“See! I’m right, am I?”_

 

I want to scream, want to stop the images of Katia’s and Evelin’s and everyone else’s corpses running through my head like a morbid parade, want to get her to shut up, for she doesn’t control me anymore…. but I can’t.

 

The room is closing in on me, and there’s someone yelling at me, for all I’m good at is getting people killed…. and I have to escape.

 

“.....can you hear me? I just want to know if everything’s alright….” Emilia asks, pulling me out of my thoughts…. I know I’m safe, but…. I still keep falling into the dreams and memories.

 

The rest of class is completely silent.

 

* * *

 

The second class ends, I sprint out the door, hoping that running will help me escape…. but the memories find me anyways, like bullets heading to a target…..

 

_“Oh, who’s she? This is my older sister, Katia Braginskaya…. and that’s your killer, Katia.”_

 

_“Don’t worry! I’m not getting into a relationship with a serial killer! Can you call someone a serial killer if they’ve only killed two people?”  
_

_“Okay, fine, one of the people was you and the other one was her sister, but still….”_

_“....anyways, love and hate are pretty much the same thing, as are love and abuse, so don’t worry! Everything’s going to be perfectly fine! Katia, there’s nothing wrong with me!”_

_“Haven’t I told you that we’re just the same person? Isn’t that why I love you?”_

Somehow, the world’s denatured around me, surrounding me with television screens filled with memories, and they’re all closing in on me, suffocating me…..

 

_So, there’s nothing you can do, isn’t it? You’re not strong enough to face the truth…._

I want to say that she’s wrong, that all of the screens are completely wrong, but I’m paralyzed and can’t move any part of my body…. and as I’m such a weak person, why don’t I just-

 

“Don’t worry! I’ll save you!”

 

 


	6. Episode 5

Lillian’s shooting bullets from her fingers as she gracefully falls into the barrier. Each one shatters the centers of the screens surrounding me, yet part of me thinks that I’m hallucinating, for how is this possible and why is she here….

 

“....Rasia?! How did you get here?!” she exclaims, picking me up as the world goes back to normal, although it’s incredibly cold for some reason or another….

 

“....why are you here…. what are you doing….” I ramble, trying to figure out how she got here and why she saved me…. and when did she become a magical girl?

 

“I couldn’t just let that witch kill you!” she exclaims, grabbing my arms as she puts me down. Somehow, energy’s pulsing through my veins, almost like she’s transferring her energy into my arms and healing them….

 

_So her power is to heal…. and shoot bullets from her fingertips, although she could just be using a normal gun…._

“....are your arms okay? I hope the witch didn’t injure you too severely, they’re really heavily scarred….” she rambles, and I can’t tell her that those scars had nothing to do with the witch and everything to do with my own idiocy, that’s the reason behind all my scars….

 

_She’s never going to see any of the other ones unless she sees you naked, which isn’t going to happen. Stop overreacting and being weak._

“....yes, they’re fine…. when did you become a magical girl? What did you wish for?” I ask, hoping that she doesn’t think that I’m being overly curious or distracting her….

 

“As…. Katia’s dead…. someone has to protect the town from witches, right?” she answers, staring at the sky, as if she’d hoping for her message to reach her in the afterlife….

_….so, she’s playing Katia’s role and taking up her legacy…. and what have you done with yourself, apart from dealing with grief in idiotic ways?_

“As for my wish…. I wanted to cure my brother of his illness….. he’s still in the hospital, for they want to make sure that he’s actually healthy and not just recording a bunch of false positives, but he’ll be out soon….” she rambles, turning back towards me, her voice sounding weak for some reason, but I’m probably overreacting…..

 

“So, do you think we should continue our witch hunt?” she asks, grabbing my hand. I want to tell that she shouldn’t bring me with her, that I’m just going to hold her back…. but I can’t bring myself to.

 

* * *

 

“....ah….. it should be….. around here….” Lillian rambles, her voice growing weaker as she releases my hand and pulls out her gun….. and the world looks perfectly normal, unless the sheer normality is an illusion created by the witch before it starts assaulting us….

 

“....are you alright?” I ask, as bullets fly out of her hands, only to dissolve in midair, for some reason….. and the world’s turning into a garish landscape, filled with headless women shooting lightning at us….

 

“....yes, I’m fine…. don’t worry…..” she answers, but her voice is still growing weaker and I don’t know if she could die right now, and it’d all be my fault…. so I just need to wish for something….

 

_I…. oh, just wish for something random. You’ll inevitably screw it up either way._

“I….” I begin, only to realize that the words are stuck in my throat and I physically can’t say anything, it’s like someone’s trying to prevent me from saying the words….. so we’re both going to die here through electrocution….

_Everyone…. I’m sorry. I deserve this, but you don’t…._

And then someone with blonde hair who’s wearing black falls into the barrier, shooting arrows out of her fingertips…. and she looks kind of familiar, like I met her a while ago and forgot who she was….

 

* * *

 

“.....thank you! You’re amazing….” Lillian rambles as the world goes back to normal, and I try to figure out when I’ve seen this girl before…..

 

“.....you shouldn’t overexert yourself. Magic is like a muscle, and if you try to take on too much, you’ll end up hurting yourself.” the girl answers, staring at a spot above my head. “So you two are Rasia and Lillian?”

 

_How does she know who we are…. and why does she sound familiar?_

“....oh, and in case you’re wondering how I know this, I’m her roommate…. and sorry if this is a really stupid question, but can I borrow your bathtub?” she rambles, and so that’s where I know her from, the random stranger at the other end of Katia’s headset who knows everything about me, everything that I’ve tried to hide….

 

“Ah, sure, but why do you need one?” Lillian rambles, grabbing her hand.

 

“....it…. helps me deal with grief, I suppose….” she answers, grabbing my hand as we begin to walk.

 

* * *

 

“....um, ignore the sign, he’s better now and not going to hurt anyone….” Lillian rambles as we reach her house, and that sign is still dry for some inexplicable reason…..

 

“.....he really would get along with my sister. Anyways, so I’ll be upstairs floating in your bathtub if you need me, and I’ll attempt to mentor you after that….” the girl rambles, adjusting her glasses as she opens the door…. and either she never introduced herself or I forgot her name…..

 

“Do you want tea?” Lillian asks, as we walk into her living room and sit down around her table.

 

“....I guess…. I don’t want to inconvenience you….” I answer, pulling out my notes and attempting to distract myself from the memories by plunging myself into review….

 

_How much did she hear from the screens? How much does she know about me?_

“....can you tell me what we did in class?” Lillian asks, thankfully pulling me out of my thoughts as she places a tray with three teacups on the glass table.

 

“Um…. I have the notes….” I begin, before realizing that I can’t remember anything from class sans my discussion with Emilia….. and I suppose I should bring some tea upstairs?

 

_I mean, you can always introduce yourself to someone who already knows anything, see if she hates you, and is it even safe to drink tea in bathtubs?_

Lillian’s reading over my notes as I remove the other two cups of tea from the tray and place them on the table, before grabbing the tray and walking up the stairs, hoping that it doesn’t fall…..

 

“....um, hello? There’s tea?” I ask, hoping that I don’t bother anyone….

 

“....I’m in the room furthest to the left from where you are, thanks…. give me a second….” she exclaims, as I turn left and walk down the hallway, before opening the door. There’s no steam in the room, but she doesn’t seem to be aware that I’m here…. she is facing away from me, and-

 

_…..hey…. what’s on her…. oh god….. what happened to her….. what did I do to her….._

“I’m sorry!” I exclaim, as images of dead people run through my head again, like I’m tied to the wall and can’t escape….. and there are hundreds of things I’ve done, hundreds of injuries and scars I’ve caused by being a distractible idiot…..

 

_“Oh, don’t worry. This is what you deserve, isn’t it?”_

The cup falls out of my hand, shattering into a million pieces…. and it’s true, I do deserve this fate…. I should just let her kill me, for she’s doing the right thing in removing superfluous people from this planet…..

 

Someone’s calling out my name, but it doesn’t matter, for the world’s turning black around me…..

 

 


End file.
